SUSTAINABLE FUTURES

DEVELOPING CELLS, MINDS, AND HEALTHY COMMUNITIES

SHAPING THE INFORMATION SOCIETY

IDENTITIES, CULTURES, AND CONNECTIONS

TOOLS AND TECHNOLOGIES FOR TOMORROW

OREGON: A PLACE, A LABORATORY, A CANVAS

OREGONRESEARCHANNUAL REPORT 2012

A New Era of Research ExcellenceIt’s an exciting time at the University of Oregon. There’s a renewed collaborative

spirit on campus and a fresh optimism that stems from some big developments. This past year, the many research news events coming out of the UO are

reasons for our academic community to celebrate:

• There’stheopeningof thenewRobertandBeverlyLewisIntegrativeScienceBuilding.The$65millionfacilitywasdesignedfromthegroundupfor interdisciplinary research, which is something we’ve always done well at theUO.TheLewisBuildingwillencourageevenmorecollaborationacrossdepartments and represents the future of research excellence at the UO.

• Numerousothergrantsandawards,includingarecentpartnershipforinnovationawardfromtheNationalScienceFoundationtoacceleratethecommercialization of inorganic nanoparticle technologies, and an award from the Department of Education to fund new courses and enhancements to the LatinAmericanStudies(LAS)ProgramandCenterforLatino/aandLatinAmericanStudies(CLLAS).

• Membersof ourfacultycontinuetoexcelonanumberof fronts.ChemistryprofessorGeriRichmondwasappointedtotheNationalScienceBoardbyPresidentObama.ScientistswithourCenterforHighEnergyPhysicsplayedapivotalroleintherecentdiscoveryof whatcouldbetheelusiveHiggsBosonparticle.

You’ll read about some of these discoveries and achievements in this report. Scatteredthroughoutthepublicationyou’llalsofinddescriptionsof ourUOStrategicResearchThemes.Theseweredevisedbyjunior,midlevel,andeminentfaculty members from across the campus to identify strategic research themes thatreflectourcompetitiveadvantageattheUOandserveasfocalpointsof excellence. You can read the complete themes on our website at research.uoregon.edu,whereyouwillalsofindup-to-dateUOresearchnews.

The stories in this report demonstrate a few of the many reasons the UO continuestoattractpreeminentresearchers,top-notchgraduatestudents,andgenerous donors who step up to make research excellence happen every day. Thank you for supporting research, innovation, and graduate education at the University of Oregon.

Kimberly Andrews EspyVice President for Research and Innovation

Michael R. GottfredsonPresident University of Oregon

Table of ContentsSIFTING THROUGH THE SUBATOMIC WRECKAGE 2In search of the elusive Higgs Boson particle with a UO physics team

EXPLORING BIOLOGY AND THE BUILT ENVIRONMENT 3UO researchers lead the way in a hot new subspecialty

ENVISIONING MODERN GLOBAL EDUCATION 4A UO professor calls for a more thoughtful approach to educating the global citizens of tomorrow

UNTANGLING THE HUMAN VISUAL SYSTEM 5One researcher examines the neural circuitry of the visual system to explain how we “see”

TRACING THE REMAINS OF A FOUNDING SOCIETY 6Big discoveries from a UO research site in Eastern Oregon provide new insight into the earliest North Americans

STORY OF AN ORGANIZED LABOR MOVEMENT SHEDS LIGHT ON LATINO POPULATION 7Research into the history of the state’s largest Latino organization continues to resonate, more than a decade after it started

RIPPLE EFFECT OF RESEARCH 8Research yields innovations that create jobs and support a higher quality of life for all Oregonians, UO economist says

PROVIDING A PUSH TO RURAL ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT EFFORTS 9UO center brings technical knowledge to make innovation a reality

GIVING GRADUATE STUDENTS A LEG UP 10How one student fulfilled her dream through the Graduate Internship Program

FELLOWSHIPS AND AWARDS SUPPORT GRADUATE STUDENT RESEARCH 11A physics student finds that opportunities abound at the UO

A SMALL UO SPIN-OUT WITH BIG POTENTIAL 12A “microfluidic device” captures the attention of drug manufacturers

SCRATCHING THE SURFACE OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY 13One UO faculty member’s research and advocacy earns her a seat on the National Science Board

NEW HIGH PERFORMANCE SCIENCE HUB RAISES THE BAR 14–15How the new $65 million Lewis Integrative Science Building is invigorating research and innovation

BY THE NUMBERS 16A look at the numbers behind UO research, innovation, and graduateeducation

ON THE HORIZON 17Looking ahead to future UO research successes

AWARDS Back coverA selection of research-related awards in 2012

On the cover: Sustainable bamboo paneling in the atrium of the Robert and Beverly Lewis Integrative Science Building serves as the backdrop for the University of Oregon’s Six Strategic Research Themes.

Background: Opened in October of 2012, the Robert and Beverly Lewis Integrative Science Building is the University of Oregon’s new $65 million hub for high-performance science. Innovative in design and function, the Lewis Building brings together strategic clusters of researchers from different disciplines to solve society’s grand challenges.

Smashing protons together in search of the secrets to the universe at the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) near Geneva,

Switzerland, yields enormous amounts of data—on the scale of all the information contained on the social networking site Facebook. Deciding which of those collisions are important and which can be ignored is an immense undertaking where the University of Oregon high-energy physics team has taken a leading role, explains James Brau, Philip H. Knight Professor of Natural Science and director of the UO Center for High Energy Physics.

In order to sift through the wreckage of interactions, which occur at a rate of hundreds of millions per second, the UO team developed hardware and software algorithms that ignored a million collisions for every one that was saved.

“It’s a search of precious golden needles buried somewhere in the haystack,” says Brau, the 2012 Presidential Research Lecturer. “If you don’t do this right, you can throw away the babies with the bath water.”

Brau and the UO team have been working on what’s been described as the largest science experiment in the world, the search for the elusive Higgs Boson particle. Through their work on the ATLAS experiment—a particle physics experiment at the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN) laboratory exploring the fundamental nature of matter and the

basic forces that shape our universe—the team played an important role in what could prove to be the scientific discovery of a lifetime.

The Higgs Boson made international headlines in July of 2012 when scientists working at the Swiss collider announced that they had found evidence for the so-called “God particle.” The details of the discovery were published in September 2012.

Scientists are not ready to say they’ve definitely found the Higgs Boson. Brau is quick to note that the data only gives a rough measure of the features of this new particle. But so far, it looks for all the world like the Higgs Boson, which has been a missing cornerstone of modern physics for years despite its theoretical status.

The Higgs Boson is the last missing piece of the Standard Model, a theoretical foundation for modern physics that offers deep cosmic explanations. The Higgs Boson is believed to provide the mechanism for generating mass in other fundamental particles and is key to understanding the structure of the universe. The particle is named after the Scottish physicist Peter Higgs who proposed its existence in 1964 and the Indian physicist Satyendra Nath Bose who earlier developed the theory of particles with integer spin (0, 1, 2, and so on), known as bosons.

The Higgs Boson, Brau says, also explains electromagnetism’s relationship to the weak nuclear force that is responsible for radioactive decay. And it leads to deeper theories about dark matter, dark energy, and other mysteries of the universe.

“We have no idea of the potential applications or what the eventual practical implications might be,” Brau says. “But its significance in our understanding of the universe cannot be overstated.”

The Higgs Boson could have unexpected consequences, says Brau, drawing a parallel with James Clerk Maxwell’s 1873 discovery that electricity and magnetism are both regulated by the same force. Years later came radio, television, microwaves, radar, and thermal imaging.

The UO team working on the Switzerland-based experiment includes faculty members David Strom, Eric Torrence, and Ray Frey, as well as UO postdocs and students. Strom, as “trigger coordinator,” has been leading the responsibility for deciding when to capture data after interesting collisions at the ATLAS experiment.

Recent UO doctoral student graduates Jacob Searcy and Andreas Reinsch have studied collisions involving other particles. Searcy mapped the rates at which top quarks emerge from collisions and Reinsch sought out microscopic black holes.

UO physicists are also part of a worldwide collaboration developing the design and technology for the next great global physics experiment, the International Linear Collider. It will be capable of measuring properties of the Higgs Boson with even greater precision. Such precision is needed, Brau said, for new discoveries that will help shed light on dark matter, extra dimensions of space, and other unexplained phenomena.

Shaping the Information Society

UO FACULTY MEMBERS

•Areharvestingthemassiveamounts of digital information at our fingertips and creating new research opportunities involving everything from atmospheric carbon measurements to accelerated particles to voting patterns.

•Areutilizingdatafromthisever-shifting information “ecosystem” to advance Oregon’s position within the emerging global economy and accelerate progress in computing, humanities, communications, marketing, physical and natural sciences, arts, and education.

RESEARCH

Sifting Through the Subatomic Wreckage

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James Brau is the UO Philip H. Knight Professor of Natural Science. A professor of physics, and the director of the UO Center for High Energy Physics, he gave the 2012 Presidential Research Lecture.

In a recent TEDx talk she gave before a Portland audience, microbiologist Jessica Green described the ecosystem

of a typical indoor space and the trillions of diverse microorganisms that interact with each other, with humans, and with their environment.

“Buildings are complex ecosystems that are an important source of microbes—some of which are good for us, some of which are bad,” Green said.

A TED fellow, Green is an associate professor of biology who directs the UO’s Biology and the Built Environment (BioBE Center), a national research center funded by the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation.

With their research into the microbial ecosystems of indoor spaces, Green and her colleagues are shedding new light on one of science’s final frontiers. Although humans in the developed world spend 90 percent of their lives in enclosed buildings, Green says we know very little about the biology of the built environment. The research is just beginning, but already the group’s

A UO Team Leads the Way in One of Biology’s Hottest Specialties

findings are challenging the view that biodiversity research only belongs in places like the tropics.

“All the beauty one would experience outdoors is inside as well,” said Brendan Bohannan, an expert in the microbes of the Amazon rainforest who directs the UO Institute of Ecology and Evolution (IE2) and has turned his sights to studying indoor environments as a member of the BioBE team. “The diversity of life you’d find outside is in here as well.”

Just a few years ago, the research coming out of the BioBE Center would not have even been possible, but advances in microbial genomics now offer the potential to significantly

advance our understanding of the “built environment microbiome”—the totality of microbial cells, their genetic elements, and their interactions indoors. In just a short time, the field of “indoor ecology” has become a hot specialty of biology, and UO scientists are leading the way by looking at entire communities of microbes rather than just looking at one pathogen in isolation. The BioBE team was recently featured in a Discover Magazine cover story, which described the center as “a global hub for research into the biology of the great indoors.”

The goal of the BioBE project is to promote human health and environmental sustainability by optimizing the design and operation of buildings, which is one of the reasons the team’s core triumvirate includes architect G.Z. “Charlie” Brown. The director of the UO’s Energy Studies in Buildings Laboratory (ESBL), Brown is an expert in sustainable buildings. His involvement ensures that the discoveries made by the BioBE team inform the design of the hospital or office building of tomorrow.

“Hospitals often try to solve problems of indoor air quality and infection transmission with high-ventilation rates that exaggerate heating and cooling, causing increased energy use,” Brown says. “We’ve got a lot of material on airflow, but very little on microorganisms.”

Based on the numbers, which show thousands of deaths each year due to hospital-acquired infections, new approaches are needed to create a healthy indoor ecosystem. The BioBE team is studying what will improve the indoor environment by sampling the air inside test sites like the UO’s sustainably built Lundquist College of Business and a Portland hospital. A recently completed test chamber at ESBL’s Portland lab provides them with a venue in which they can precisely control temperature, airflow, humidity, and other variables.

It’s too early to draw conclusions from the BioBE team’s findings, but Green is willing to speculate. She believes the architects of tomorrow will use complex microbiological biological data as a design tool to help create more sustainable and healthier spaces for us to live, work, and play.

(Left to right) Microbiologist Jessica Green, architect G.Z. “Charlie” Brown, and microbiologist Brendan Bohannan make up the team behind the Biology and the Built Environment (BioBE Center), a national research center devoted to the study of the microbial ecosystems of indoor spaces funded by the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation.

“The diversity of life you’d find outside is in here as well.”

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RESEARCH

Envisioning Modern Global Education

“We can use technology to turn students from consumers to creators and through creating we stimulate new learning.”

How do you prepare students for jobs that have yet to be invented? That question is at the core of Yong Zhao’s

research and his new book, World Class Learners, published by Corwin in 2012, which examines some of the ways that students and teachers are harnessing technology to become more global, creative, and entrepreneurial. In his book and on his popular blog, zhaolearning.com, he argues that the race for higher standardized test scores is hurting society and he makes the case for a more thoughtful approach to educating the global citizens of tomorrow.

“So far our schools have focused on using technology as a tool for transmitting knowledge or on making students consumers of information,” Zhao says. “But technology is a better vehicle for creation. We can use technology to turn students from consumers to creators and through creating we stimulate new learning.”

As Presidential Chair and associate dean for global education at the College of Education at the University of Oregon—and 2011–12 director of the UO Center for Advanced Technology in Education—Zhao has positioned himself squarely at the intersection of technology and education. He has written dozens of articles and books and was recently named one of the ten most influential people in educational technology for 2012 by Tech & Learning Magazine. Earlier this year, he offered his vision of a twenty-first-century classroom when he spoke before a large audience in San Diego at the conference for the International Society for Technology in Education, an annual gathering of more than 20,000 education professionals.

“A twenty-first-century school? It’s very simple, actually,” Zhao says. “Every student has a personalized learning experience based on his or her strengths and passions.”

Zhao’s vision began shifting into focus in 2012 with the launch of Oba, a UO-sponsored online portal that takes its name from the three middle letters in the word “global.” It presents students and teachers with opportunities

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Yong Zhao, a professor and Presidential Chair in the Department of Educational Methodology, Policy, and Leadership, is associate dean for global education at the College of Education.

to make connections and pursue their specialties—a virtual campus of sorts where students aren’t just learning, but also producing and exchanging ideas with peers and educators from around the world in real time.

Of course online education is not a novel idea. Integral to the Oba vision is that it’s the students and teachers who create the opportunities and drive the learning experience. And, with few access barriers in place, the service will catch on quickly, says Zhao, who has a goal of reaching millions of students within the first few years of operation.

The possibilities for Oba are still being realized. A student from the U.S. could seek help with her algebra homework from a Chinese student, who in turn asks the American student for advice applying to U.S. colleges. Or the Oba network could help connect students in smaller school districts with a teacher who can lead a virtual class on Shakespeare, Arabic, holistic health, or some other specialized subject. A teacher in New York might offer to share her research on Andy Warhol with an art student from Tokyo in exchange for some practice with her conversational Japanese.

“It’s like pen pals, but at a much higher level,” Zhao explains. “It’s Facebook with a meaningful mission.”

Developing Cells, Minds, and Healthy Communities

UO RESEARCH

Examines the complex process of development, including:

•Thesmallestmolecularinputs

•Braindevelopment,cognition,andlearning

•Education,family,andcommunity

Is enhancing our understanding of the biological, psychological, and social processes that undergird development to improve the health and well-being of people.

Scientists have been studying human vision for hundreds of years, but still lack a complete understanding of the

neural processes that allow us to see the world.CrisNiell,anassistantprofessorintheDepartmentof Biologyandmemberof theUniversityof Oregon’sInstituteof Neuroscience,isstudyingtheneuralcircuitry of the visual system to explain the mechanisms behind visual perception.“Istudyhowwemakesenseof

the visual world around us—how werecognizeafriend’sface,findourwaytothestore,orcatchaFrisbee,”Niellsays.“Ourresearchisfocusedon understanding how neural circuits perform the image processing that allows us to perform complex visual behaviors and how these circuits are assembled duringdevelopment.”Significantprogresshasbeenmadein

studying neural development and visual processing,Niellsays,butthetwohavelargely been studied separately. Questions remain about how the visual system wires

itself during development to create the specificreceptivefieldpropertiesthatunderlievision.Niellhopesfindingtheanswers to these and other questions will result in breakthroughs in the treatment of disorders ranging from blindness and dyslexia to autism and schizophrenia.

Since arriving at the UO in the fall of 2011,Niellhasrackedupanarrayof achievements, including being named oneof fifteenSearleScholars—anhonorthatincluded$300,000insupport—andearninga$50,000SloanResearchFellowship.Mostrecently,hereceiveda2012NewInnovatorAwardfromtheNationalInstitutesof Health(NIH).Theawardincludesafive-year$1.5milliongrant.TheNewInnovatorAwardrecognizes

creative new investigators who propose innovativeprojectswiththepotentialfor high impact, which seems an apt descriptionof Niellandhisresearch.Aformerphysicist,Niellturnedto

biology because he wanted to learn how the brain functions. Working out of the new$65millionRobertandBeverlyLewisIntegrativeScienceBuilding,he and his research team employ an array of tools and techniques in the lab.Theirlatestprojectexamineshowneurons establish appropriate circuits thatperformspecificcomputations.Their work requires an approach that can bridge molecular and cellular development with systems visual neuroscience,Niellsays.

“Our previous work demonstrated that the mouse visual cortex is an effective modelforstudyingvisualprocessing,”Niellexplains.“Andwehaverecentlyestablished a number of techniques allowing us to study the mouse visual system from single genes and cell types up tovisualprocessingandperception.”

Those techniques include using molecular genetic tools to manipulate developmental pathways and neural activity in subsets of neurons. The team also uses in vivo imaging to assess the impact of growth and response and performs behavioral psychophysics tests of visual perception.Thestudies,Niellsays,willprovide

important insight into the assembly of neural circuits and its underlying importance to both normal brain function and numerous developmental disorders.“Havingafundamentalunderstanding

of how the visual system works will allow us to treat a range of different disorders that may not seem obviously related to vision,”Niellsays.“Bystudyingthevisualsystem and how neurons function and don’t function within various diseases, we can start to understand higher developmentaldisorders.”Cris Niell, an assistant professor in the Department of Biology and member of the University of Oregon’s Institute of Neuroscience, is the recipient of a 2012 NIH New Innovator Award.

Untangling the Neural Circuitry of the Human Visual System

Questions remain about how the visual system wires itself.

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the years since, Jenkins and his team discovered additional artifacts and conductedmorerefinedradiocarbondatingonfibersfromthecoprolitesina manner that removed any potential contaminants.Thefindingsannouncedthisyear

resonatedwithinthescientificcommunityand were highlighted by more than 170 news outlets around the world. The report reinforced the theory that two different cultures existed for years in NorthAmerica—oneinthesoutheasternU.S.,thePlains,andthesouthwesternU.S., and one in states further west.Excavationof thePaisleyCaves

datesbackto1938whenUOscientistLutherCressman,thefatherof Oregonanthropology, discovered artifacts associated with bones of bison, camel, horse, and other animals, but few researchersacceptedthefindingsduetoalackof documentation.In2002,JenkinsandtheUOarchaeologyfieldschoolconductednewexcavationsatthePaisleyCaves,partlytotestCressman’stheories.

The digs turned up artifacts in layerafterlayerof well-stratifiedsoils,includinganashdepositleft7,640yearsagobytheeruptionof MountMazama,whichcreatedCraterLake.Amongthefindswereadditionalcamelandhorsebones,projectilepoints,sagebrushrope, a wooden peg, and human coprolites.

While Jenkins has since sealed the PaisleyCavestopreservethemforfuture generations and newer research technologies, he and his colleagues will continue to study the many artifacts they have found. Jenkins is currently writing a book about his work at the caves.

When asked about the legacy of the discovery, Jenkins says he has proved that Cressman’slong-debatedconclusionswere, in fact, rock solid.

TravelingsouthonOregonHighway31,itwouldbeeasytodriverightpast what has recently become a

placeof internationalintrigue.Inawestward-facing,rock-ladenoutcroppingrisingfromdrysoilsjustsoutheastof thepicturesquetwenty-mile-longSummerLakearethePaisleyCaves,anarchaeological site now stamped into NorthAmericanhistory.

Earlier this year, archaeologists led by Dennis Jenkins of the University of Oregon’sMuseumof NaturalandCulturalHistory,announcedthattheyhadfound the oldest directly dated remains of peopleinNorthAmerica.Theteamlocated obsidian spearheads dated to 13,110yearsagoandhumanDNAincoprolites,ordriedfeces,datedto14,300years ago, providing evidence of a culture (WesternStemmedTradition)thatsharedthecontinentwiththatof theClovispeopleabout13,000yearsago.“Thecolonizationof theAmericas

involved multiple technologically divergent, and possibly genetically divergent,foundinggroups,”theUO-led team concluded in their report publishedinthejournalScience. The spearpointsleftbehindinthePaisley

Caves,researchersconcluded,belongtothe Western Stemmed Tradition and are unliketheflutedprojectilepointsusedbytheClovispeople––longconsideredtheearliestNorthAmericans.TheUOteamidentifiedhuman

DNAextractedfromcoprolites.Thatdiscoverywasinitiallyreportedin2008inthejournalScience by Jenkins and international scientists who were experts inradiocarbondatingandDNAanalyses.TheDNApre-datedanypreviouslyfoundhumanremainsinNorthAmerica,but some archaeologists challenged the 2008claim,arguingthatcontaminantscouldhavetaintedthecoprolites.In

Dennis Jenkins displays two bases for western stemmed projectiles from Oregon’s Paisley Caves. The bases date to 13,100 years ago.

Tracing the Remains of aFounding Society in North America

Dennis Jenkins is a senior research associate with the UO Museum of Natural and Cultural History

The report reinforced the theory that two different cultures existed for years in North America.

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RESEARCH

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InAugust2012—justasincomingUniversityof OregonPresidentMichaelGottfredson was headed to Woodburn, Oregon,foroneof hisfirstpublicappearancesattheFiestaMexicana— theUO’sCenterforLatino/aandLatinAmericanStudies(CLLAS)wasalsofocusedon Woodburn with the release of the book The Story of PCUN and the Farmworker Movement in Oregon(CLLAS,2012).Foundedin1985inWoodburnto

representtheLatinofarmworkerswhoare central to Oregon’s agricultural industry,PinerosyCampesinosUnidosdelNoroeste(PCUN)isnowthelargestLatinoorganizationinthestate.The group has played a crucial role intheevolutionof Oregon’sLatinopopulation,whichhasjumpedfrom2.5percentin1980to12percentin2010saysUOCollegeof ArtsandSciencesDistinguishedProfessorLynnStephen,the author of the book and a professor of anthropologywhodirectsCLLAS.“MyMOasaresearcherissomething

Icall‘collaborativeresearch,’”Stephensays.“Thelevelof researchthatIdoandthewaythatIdoresearchresultsinthingsthatareimportanttocommunities.”

Stephen’s research starts with a discussion that asks the questions “What do you want to know? What kind of informationistheoreticallyinteresting?”WhenshefirstposedthosequestionstoaleaderinthePCUNorganizationin1998,his answer was simple:“Hesaidhewantedsomeonetotell

thestoryof thePCUNorganization,”Stephen recalls.Atthattime,Stephenwasanew

professor,freshfromBoston,whowassurprised to discover how little academic interest there was in regional immigration issues.Thestoryof California’smigrantworkers had been told time and again, but Oregon’sLatinoagricultureworkerswerewidely ignored from a research standpoint. AsStephensawit,therewassimplynoway to ignore this enormous blind spot any longer—and what better way to tell thestoryof Oregon’sLatinopopulationthantotellthestoryof PCUN.Inthefallof 1999Stephentraveled

to Woodburn on a weekly basis with ahalf-dozenstudentstoporeoverthePCUNarchives.TheyconductedinterviewswithPCUNmembers,satinon union meetings, visited workers in thefields,andbuilttrustandestablishedrelationships. She continued this work in the fall of 2000 with another group of students and also carried out additional research on her own.Theresearchresultedinthefirst

edition of Stephen’s book, published in 2001. The partnership between the UOandPCUNwascementedandgaverise to numerous other collaborations—from a bilingual theater production to aspecialcollectionintheUOLibrariesthatincludesallof thehistoricPCUNdocuments. Stephen also published an academic book, Transborder Lives: Indigenous Oaxacans in Mexico, California, and Oregon(DukeUniversityPress,2007),whichdocumentedthelivesof indigenous immigrants in Oregon with a

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Identities, Cultures, and Connections

UO IS LEADING RESEARCH

•Intheexplorationoftheevolvingmeanings and expressions of language, identity, culture, attachment, and disconnection being generated in the context of the tremendous political, historical, economic, and technological shifts taking place in the twenty-first century.

•Inthechangingattributesoftransportation, communication, economics, politics, and society, and in how individuals express their identities—as individuals, as members of groups, and as communities.

Story of a Critical Movement Sheds Light on Oregon’s Latino Population

specialfocusonWoodburnandPCUN.Stephen’s updated version of the

PCUNbooktellsthetaleof thestate’sMexicanlabormovement,rootedinOregonagricultureandtheBraceroProgramitgrewoutof inthe1940s.Itdocuments early efforts at political and labororganizinginthe1960sand1970s,the laying of the groundwork for the birthof PCUNinthe1970sand1980s,the establishment of the organization in1985,andtheensuingstrugglesforcollective bargaining, as well as the battletostopanti-immigrationlawsand the movement for comprehensive immigration reform.

Stephen says many of the students whoassistedherinthePCUNresearchwere changed by the experience. One went on to become an immigration lawyer, another teaches history and another earnedaPhDinanthropologyandnowholdsateachingpositioninFrance.Andtothinkitmightnothaveever

happened had Stephen not traveled to Woodburn to connect with some friends shemetwhileworkinginMexico.

“The connections we made and therelationshipsweforged,”Stephensays.“Allof thatcreatestremendousappreciation of the UO and knowledge about why the research is important and whypeoplearedoingit.”Background image: Laborers ready for harvesting, c. 1942–7 [Description-Notes: Mexican nationals loaded into a truck ready to begin a day’s work at harvesting, Hood River. Extension Bulletin Illustrations Photograph Collection (P20:953), Oregon Multicultural Archives, Corvallis, Oregon.)

IMPACT

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Economic Impact of Research at the University of OregonThe University of Oregon is among

the 108 institutions chosen from 4,633 U.S. universities for top-tier

designation of “Very High Research Activity” in the 2010 Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education. The UO also is one of two Pacific Northwest members of the Association of American Universities and is nationally recognized for translating basic research discoveries into practical applications.

Research and technology creates opportunities for Oregonians. And, says Tim Duy, director of the Oregon Economic Forum and author of “The Economic Impact of the University of Oregon,” UO research provides clear support for the Oregon economy.

“The ultimate impact of research extends far beyond that of the initial revenue and spending,” Duy says.

“Research yields innovations that create jobs and support a higher quality of life for all Oregonians.”

UO research innovations generated nearly $7.9 million in licensing revenue for the Oregon economy in FY2012. Almost all of this revenue comes from beyond Oregon’s borders, bolstering

“Research yields innovations that create jobs and support a higher quality of life for all Oregonians.”

the state’s economy. Companies formed from UO research also benefit the state. Aggregate numbers of jobs created and company income generated by UO startups during 2011 was 250 jobs and $35.75 million in Oregon.

Research creates jobs and fuels the economy in other ways, as well. Construction of the new $65 million Lewis Integrative Science Building contributed in the form of construction money that went to local and state businesses. With the design team and its consultants all being from the state of Oregon and the construction team using subcontractors that all hail from the state of Oregon, the economic benefits are very clear. The project created an estimated seventy-five FTE jobs for more than two years.

The contributions will likely continue, as more sponsored research projects come to Oregon as a result of the Lewis facility, bringing dollars that originate elsewhere to the state.

Left: Tim Duy, director of the Oregon Economic Forum and author of “The Economic Impact of the University of Oregon”

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Oregon: A Place, a Laboratory, a Canvas

THE UO RECOGNIZES THAT

•Oregonhasaspecialgeographyand history and the industry, values, and engagement of its citizens provide a unique context for our research—a laboratory for ideas and a canvas for reflecting and expressing our contributions.

•ResearchattheUOisembeddedin the richness and diversity of Oregon—from the distinctive landscape, plants, and animals to the history, populations, languages, literature, and arts that determine its culture.

A common problem in rural economic development is that communities with economic development agendas

often lack adequate technical knowledge orstaffingtoachievetheinnovationandentrepreneurship goals they are pursuing. Anew$125,000grantishelpingtheUniversity of Oregon’s Economic DevelopmentAdministrationCenter(EDAC)withitslong-runningefforttofillthoseneeds.

The grant comes from the U.S. Departmentof Commerce’sEconomicDevelopmentAdministrationandwillallowtheUO’sCommunityServiceCentertocontinuetoprovidetechnical assistance to businesses and organizations in economically distressed communities throughout Oregon.“Buildinglocalcapacityisthe

foundationof ourapproach,”saysRobertParker,directorof theCommunityServiceCenter.“Ourgoalis to build the capacity in communities tosetstrong,forward-lookingpolicies,

develop collaborative networks, and mobilizenewinvestmentresources.”TheUO’sEDACputsgraduate

students into rural communities, where theyreceivefield-basedlearningexperience in helping businesses address suchneedsasjobcreationorexpansion.Under the new grant, the center will work inconjunctionwiththeUODepartmentof EconomicsandLaneCommunityCollege’sofficeof theOregonSmallBusinessDevelopmentCenterNetworktobuildlong-termpartnershipsin

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EDA Grant to Sustain UO’s Lasting Rural Economic Development Efforts

economically distressed counties.Thegrantwilldirect$125,000ayear

totheEDACforuptofiveyearsunderamatching-supportarrangementtofunda$1.3millionproject.Thecenterwillcontinueitsstrongservice-learningapproach, which it implemented under aninitialroundof EDAfundingthreeyears ago.

The center’s focus will include economic development in collaboration withlocalgovernments,Oregon’sNativeAmericantribes,andprivatebusinesses.One of the aims will be helping businesses conduct feasibility studies and analyses.AkeypartnerinthatinitiativeisDriveOregon,anonprofitpublic-privategroup seeking to promote, support, and grow the electric vehicle industry in Oregon.TheUO’sEDACisoneof several

serviceportalsof theCommunityServiceCenterandhasalonglistof completedprojects.Itisinvolvedinimpactanalysesof theLatinobusinesscommunityandthesnow-skiindustry across the state, as well as the development of a comprehensive businessstrategyfortheCowCreekbandof the Umpqua tribe. Other initiatives include a review of water quality issues in Turner, Oregon, and an evaluation of the EugeneWaterandElectricBoard’spilotprogram for smart meters.

Robert Parker and Megan Smith codirect the Community Service Center.

“Our goal is to build the capacity in communities to set strong, forward-looking policies.”

L uciaBattagliawasamiddle-schoolerinMexicowhenshefirstshowedaninterestinthesciences.Atthetime,

it wasn’t exactly clear that she had found her calling.“Iwasdoingterribly,”sherecalled.

“Mychemistryteacherpulledmeasideand tried to explain the importance of chemistrytome.HemademebelieveIcouldbegoodatthis.”Battaglia,nowadevelopment

engineeratIntelCorporation,wentonto complete her bachelor’s degree in chemicalengineeringattheNationalAutonomousUniversityof Mexico.Shemoved to Oregon to study chemistry atPortlandStateUniversitybeforecompleting a master’s degree in chemistry at the University of Oregon.Battagliaworkedhardtoachieve

academic success, but it was the Graduate InternshipProgram(GIP)attheUOthatreally propelled her toward her ultimate goalof workingatIntel.Theacceleratedprogram pairs intensive lab and course workwithnine-monthpaidinternshipsinthe industry. Students receive instruction, hands-ontraining,andaccesstothehigh-capacityscientificinstrumentsintheCenterforAdvanceMaterialsCharacterizationinOregon(CAMCOR),

theUO’shigh-techextensionservicehousedintheLokeyLaboratories.Theinnovative,results-orientedprogramfast-tracksstudentsintoscientificcareers.

Of course, it also takes a special kind of student.AsBattagliashowedwhenshe introduced herself to her classmates intheGIP,hercommitmenttohergoalsran deep.“MynameisLuciaBattaglia,”she

announced.“AndIwanttoworkatIntel.”Battaglia’sfascinationwith

semiconductors began in the chemistry labatPSU.Herprofessorsuggestedsheconsider the master’s program at the UO, which combined engineering and chemistryandseemedliketheperfectfit.Battaglia’sengineeringbackground

qualifiedherforseveralpositionsatIntel,butthemaster’sprogramhelpedfocus her knowledge of the technology. Afterspendingasummerdissectingsemiconductors, she found she had a

strong edge over other applicants.Battagliaappliedforthreepositions

at the semiconductor giant and got invitedbackforthreeinterviews.Inoneof the interviews, she was asked about metal-oxide-semiconductorfield-effecttransistors(MOSFETs).“DoyouknowwhataMOSFETis?”

the interviewer asked.“Do you want me to draw one for

you?”Battagliareplied,beforeofferingup a perfect sketch of the commonly used circuit transistor.Battagliaendedupreceivingoffers

for all three positions, but decided the developmentengineerjobwasforher.Nowthatshe’snolongerinschool,she has time to concentrate on other things—like taking a boxing class, trainingforahalf-marathon,andsettinga great example for her son, a student at PortlandCommunityCollege.Battagliahascomealongwaysince

her days as a struggling chemistry student.AsanIntelengineer,sheenjoysdeveloping new technologies and seeing the latest and greatest in equipment and processes years before anybody else does. She loves being a part of a vital industry, and her time at the UO helped her dream big and achieve her goals.

Lucia Battaglia earned her master’s degree in chemistry from the UO. She completed the Graduate Internship Program and now works as a development engineer at Intel Corporation.

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Graduate Internship Program Gives Students an Edge“My name is Lucia Battaglia and I want to work at Intel.”

FELLOWSHIPS AND AWARDS

Each year the UO Graduate School promotes and encourages

fellowships and awards that support graduatestudentresearch.Theschool provides tuition and benefits support for graduate teaching fellows and offers additional awards and fellowships.

TheUOdonor-andstate-fundedfellowships and awards administered directly by the Graduate School, including those provided through its Promising Scholar Awards and Graduate School Research Awards programs, amounted to more than $400,000 in stipends and another $400,000 in tuition in the 2011–12 academic year.

TheGraduateSchoolalsoassists students in identifying and applying for hundreds of external fellowships and awards administered by governmental agencies, private foundations, and corporations. What follows is a sampling of graduate student awards in 2012.

Stellar Award—Iain More FellowsBrian Brush, architecture, doctoralLauren Kahn, psychology, doctoralChristine Lykken, biology, doctoral

UO Public Impact AwardsGraciela Lu, geography, doctoralAssitan Sylla, international studies,

master’s

UO Doctoral Research FellowsMonica McLellan, comparative

literatureChristopher Weber, chemistry

OUS Sylff FellowsAmanda Bednarz, landscape

architecture, master’sJekatyerina Dunajeva, political

science, doctoralMelissa Liebert, anthropology,

doctoralKaren Rosenbloom, arts

management, master’sLaurie Trautman, geography,

doctoral

Andrea Yocom’s interest in the sciences crystalized at a summer engineering campinhernativestateof Colorado.

Afterearningabachelor’sdegreeinengineering physics, she was drawn to the University of Oregon by the faculty members she met and the stellar materials research facilities she saw during a visit totheCenterforAdvancedMaterialsCharacterizationinOregonknownasCAMCOR,theUO’shigh-techextensionservice.“Isawmoreequipmentthansmaller

universities had and more equipment in one place than larger universities had,”Yocomrecalls.“Iwasdefinitelyimpressed.”Nowagraduatestudentinphysics,

Yocom is focused on optics and materials science. She works with a research group developing more absorbent polymer solar cells.Andastherecipientof aNationalScienceFoundationGraduateResearchFellowship,shereceives$30,000annuallyto achieve her research goals.TherearethirteenNSFgraduatefellows

at the UO—six of them newly chosen in 2012—whose burgeoning research careers are being generously supported bytheNSF.Theirinterestsrangefrommicrobestobushmonkeyflowers,andlike Yocom, many of them have wanted to be scientists for as long as they can

NSF Graduate Research Fellowships

Andrea Yocom, a National Science Foundation Fellow, is a graduate student in physics at the UO.

remember. The program recognizes and supports outstanding graduate students inNSF-supportedscience,technology,engineering, and mathematics disciplines whoarepursuingresearch-basedmaster’sdegrees or doctorates.

Yocom credits her mentor and advisor,MiriamDeutsch,anassociateprofessor of physics, with providing her the guidance and support she needed to earnanNSFfellowship.NSFfellowshavegoneontoearn

NobelPrizesandreachothernotableheights.PastfellowsincludeU.S.Secretaryof EnergyStevenChu,GooglefounderSergeyBrin,andStevenLevitt,coauthorof the book Freakonomics(2005).

NSF GRADUATE FELLOWSHIP RECIPIENTSJoshua Bahr, biologyAshley Bateman, biologyAlese Colehour, anthropologyHannah Dietterich, geologyAlexander Kendall, chemistryLaurel Hiebert, biologyKathryn Jankowski, psychologyKirsten Meyer, biologyCandice Mottweiler, psychologyJimena Santillan, psychologyKristin Sikkink, biologyAndrew Vandegrift, biologyAndrea Yocom, physics

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Winners of the 2012 Iain More Stellar Award were recognized at a Graduate School luncheon. (L to R) Kimberly Andrews Espy, vice president for research and innovation and dean of the Graduate School; Christine Lykken, graduate student in biology; Brian Brush, graduate student in architecture; Iain More ’67, a UO Foundation Board international trustee; Lauren Kahn, graduate student in psychology; Sandra Morgen, vice provost for graduate studies and associate dean; and Jan Monti ’69, MA ’71, a UO Foundation Board trustee.

Tools and Technologies for Tomorrow

UO RESEARCHERS ARE

•Workingonsolvingtoday’schallenges and tomorrow’s complex problems in the globally competitive context that requires the development of new tools and entrepreneurial technologies.

•Buildingonthemodelsfirstinitiated at the UO to crack the genetic code of health and disease—combining fundamental inquiry with translational application to create breakthroughs in educational and behavioral assessment.

IMPACT

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NemaMetrixisonlyinitsinfancy,butthe University of Oregon spinout is drawing interest from biotechnology

firmsandpharmaceuticalcompaniesforthe“microfluidicdevice”(or“chip”)developed by the UO team. The apparatus captures and monitors tiny roundworms, allowing scientists to study the effects of particular compounds.Atthemomentthedevicehasthe

greatest potential to accelerate the discovery of drugs used to eliminate worm infections in humans and livestock, saysShawnLockery,aprofessorintheUniversity of Oregon Department of Biologyandcodirectorof theInstituteof Neuroscience(ION).LockeryandcodeveloperJanisWeeks,

also a professor in the biology department and neuroscience institute, founded NemaMetrixin2011.BiologyprofessorandIONmemberBillRobertsservesasthe team’s expert in computerized data mining and statistical analysis.

The elastomer device is designed for the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans, a tiny organism that measures 1 millimeter longand50micronswide,whichhasastrong genetic application to humans. The worm’s pharynx pumps regularly, like a heartbeat, emitting signals that can be monitored as in an electrocardiogram or EKG.

Weeks says the fact that anthelmintic drugs used to combat parasitic worm infections generally attack the proteins that control electrical activity makes the C. elegans nematode the perfect test subject.Lockerytookasabbaticalleave

atHarvardUniversitytostudywithGeorge Whitesides—a pioneer behind microfluidics,whichinvolvesprecisecontrol and manipulation of constrained fluids.LockeryreturnedtoOregonwithaclear idea of how to apply his knowledge to drug screening and began fabricating themicrofluidicdevice.HecreditstheUO’s Technology Transfer Services officewithhelpinfocusinghisbigidea.Initially,hecontactedthedepartmentwith other research he had conducted

on C. elegans, but conversations with technology transfer staff members led to theconclusionthatmicrofluidics-baseddrug screening was a promising area for commercialization.“WhatIlearnedthroughthisprocess

isthatthey’retheretoserveyouragenda,”Lockerysays.“They’remorelikeareferencelibrary.Theysay‘Whatdoyouwant to do?’ and they’ll help you do it. Andthentheircutintermsof royaltiesandlicensingisreallyjustforself-sustainingtheirorganization.”Lockeryappliedforandwona

two-yearNationalInstitutesof Healthchallenge grant available through the AmericanRecoveryandReinvestmentAct.HeandWeeksobtainedfundingto further validate the device and developNemaMetrixasabusinessfromONAMI,theOregonNanoscienceandMicrotechologiesInstitute.Onthe business side, the team is working withNathanLillegard,cofounderandex-CEOof thesuccessfulUOspinoff

Floragenex,ageneticresearchfirm,who now is program manager for the LundquistCenterforEntrepreneurship.TheNemaMetrixgroup’srecently

published paper on the device was named among the top papers of the yearbythejournalLab on a Chip, which focusesonminiaturizationatthemicro-and nanoscale.Improvingglobalhealthisamajor

motivating factor for members of the NemaMetrixteam.Ultimately,thegrouphopes to see their device implemented in the developing world, particularly in Africawhereworminfectionshavetakena heavy toll. Weeks got involved in global health issues after teaching neuroscience inAfricaandhascommittedherself toexpanding the UO’s global health course offerings.SheandLockeryhopetotakeadvantageof thenewGabon-UOinitiative to inspire collaboration with Africancountries.BecauseNemaMetrix’sdevicecanbe

customized, the researchers plan to apply it to the study of other organisms. There is also the potential to use the device for environmental toxicity screening or, by expressing ion channels of the human heart in the pharynx of the nematode, researcherscouldefficientlyscreendrugsfor cardiotoxicity.

A Small Device with Big Potential for Drug Manufacturers

(Left to right) Bill Roberts, Janis Weeks, and Shawn Lockery are the core trio behind the UO spin-out NemaMetrix.

Improving global health is a major motivating factor.

GeriRichmond’sinterestinwaterispurelysuperficial—butthatdoesn’tmake her work any less important.

She seeks to understand the simplest properties of what holds a water surface together, which can be applied to everything from oil spills to baby diapers.

“This is about studying the fundamentals behind the most important surface properties on earth—the surface of water,”saysRichmond,theUO’sRichardM.andPatriciaH.NoyesProfessorof ChemistrywhorecentlywasappointedbyPresidentObamatotheNationalScienceBoard.Morethanjustaninvaluablenatural

resource, water bridges virtually all areas of scienceandtechnology.Richmond’sresearch into water surfaces examines some of the key chemical and physical processes of everyday life, such as how water interacts with membranes in the body and how environmental processes occur at liquid surfaces. Some of her recentprojectsincludeanexaminationof sulfur dioxide absorption on aqueous surfaces(i.e.,themechanicsbehind

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Scratching the Surface of Science and Technologyatmosphericpollutionandacidrain)published in the Journal of the American Chemical SocietyandaNationalScienceFoundation–fundedinterdisciplinarycollaboration with a group of physicists andchemiststoboosttheefficiencyof solar cells.“Iseetheseprojectsasameansof

discovery,”Richmondsays.“Andmoreimportantly,Iseethemasameansof training and working closely with research students.”Longbeforeshedreamedof being

ascientist,Richmondwantedtobea teacher and that desire has clearly informed her research career. She says that she can’t imagine a more satisfying andenjoyablecareerthanthecombinationof scientificresearchandteaching.Atwenty-seven-yearveteranof the

UO,Richmondsaysshe’sbeenabletoconductimportantresearchprojectswhilealso having the opportunity to contribute in other capacities, such as mentoring women scientists and graduate students aroundtheworld.From1999to2006,RichmondservedontheOregonStateBoardof HigherEducation,thestatutorygoverning board of the Oregon University System and its seven universities.InductedintotheNationalAcademyof

Sciencesin2011,RichmondwasrecentlyawardedtheAmericanPhysicalSociety’s2013Davisson-GermerPrizeinSurfaceorAtomicPhysics,andshereceivedtheAmericanChemicalSociety’s2013CharlesLathropParsonsAwardforheradvocacyon behalf of higher education, science policy, and women scientists.RichmondcofoundedtheCommittee

ontheAdvancementof WomenChemists(COACh),anorganizationthat provides mentoring and support to women scientists around the globe, and

she’s been a longtime advocate for women in science. She’s been invited to the White House,giventestimonybeforeCongress,andwithfinancialsupportfromtheDepartment of State, is currently working onseveralprojectswithwomenscientistsin developing countries.Richmond’srecentappointment

totheNationalScienceBoard,akeyappointment to the organization that acts as the oversight body for the NationalScienceFoundation,followsher national service on numerous science advisoryboards,withthisbeingherfirstpresidential appointment.“Iamhonoredtobeselectedfor

serviceonthisboard,”Richmondsays,“andIlookforwardtoworkingwithothers on the board to advance the cause forscienceinthisnation.”

A recent Obama appointee to the National Science Foundation, Geri Richmond is the UO’s Richard M. and Patricia H. Noyes Professor of Chemistry.

Graduate student Laura McWilliams reviews her research with chemistry professor Geri Richmond and fellow graduate student Brandon Schabes. McWilliams uses a laser system to examine interactions on water surfaces.

Sustainable Futures

UO SCIENTISTS ARE

•Redesigningthewayshumansmanage and steward natural resources.

•Takinggreenapproachestore-engineering the science, manufacturing, and business processes related to manufactured resources.

•Restructuringcitiesandbuildingsfor improved livability.

•Developingnewadvancedmaterials and processes to reduce our energy footprint.

•Makingthestateanintellectualand economic leader in fostering a sustainable future for our planet and its people.

TheRobertandBeverlyLewisIntegrativeScienceBuildingofficiallyopeneditsdoorsonOctober26,2012,withagrandopeningceremonythatdrewlocalandstatepoliticians,UOFoundationtrustees,facultyandstaff members,students,andthe

majordonorswhosupportedthe$65millionproject.The103,000-square-footfacilitybringsworld-classresearchersfromarangeof

differentdisciplinestogetherunderoneroof.Itrepresentsalargeleapforwardinbothfunctionanddesign.AsOregon’sfirsthigh-performancescienceresearchhub,itwill facilitate innovative and collaborative research destined to achieve transformative scientificbreakthroughs.Thebuildingprovidesunprecedentedaccesstointerdisciplinarylabsandhigh-tech

tools and equipment. The facility:• IsontracktoearnLeadershipinEnergyandEnvironmentalDesign(LEED)PlatinumCertificationfromtheU.S.GreenBuildingCouncil.

• HousestheLewisCenterforNeuroimaging,whichsupportsinterdisciplinary,multifaceted research in cognitive neuroscience and biological imaging and boasts a research-dedicated3TMRIscannerandotherhigh-performanceresearchtools.

• IshometotheCenterforAdvancedMaterialsCharacterizationinOregon(CAMCOR),asharedinstrumentationfacilityopentoindustrialandacademicclientsonafee-for-usebasisthatservesastheUO’shigh-techextensionservice.

TheLewisBuildingwasfundedpartlythroughprivatedonations.DonorsincludedRobertandBeverlyLewisandLorryI.Lokey,alongwithWilliamSwindells,theJamesR.KuseFamilyFoundation,andRosariaHaugland.TheLewisBuildingwasalsofinancedwithfederalandstategrantsandstatebonds,

including$30millioninArticleXI-Gbonds—thelargestG-bondinvestmentinacademic buildings in the UO’s history.

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The centerpiece of the Robert and Beverly Lewis Center for NeuroImaging (LCNI) is a Siemens Magnetom Skyra 3T magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scanner. The large-bore, whole-body MRI is used by researchers in a variety of disciplines and is open for use by outside partners on a fee-for-service basis.

HIGH PERFORMANCE

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Center for Sustainable Materials Chemistry

Oneof themostforward-focusedoccupantsof theLewisBuildingistheCenterforSustainableMaterials

Chemistry(CSMC),whichisdevotedtothe development of new methods and new techniques in sustainable chemistry. The focal point for the UO’s pioneering greenchemistryprograms,theCSMCis a nationwide program with state and federalpartnerssuchastheNationalInstituteof StandardsandTechnology,aswellasprivate-sectorpartnerssuchasHewlett-PackardandIBM.Inadditiontoadvancingthescientific

enterprise, the center aims to transform thenextgenerationof products.Amongotherprojects,researchersareworkingtoproduce thinner electronic components and reducing waste in the semiconductor industrytomaketheproductionof flatpanel television sets greener. Through the center, the UO supports the Oregon governor’sGreenChemistryInnovationInitiative.

Oregon State University is a close partnerwiththeUOintheCSMC.Working together, the two Oregon institutions have produced some significantresults,includinganelectronicswitch that outperforms the fastest silicon-basedsemiconductors,andwater-based manufacturing techniques that reduce waste and improve productivity. The center has spun off two startup companies and generated more than a dozen U.S. patents.Anotherkeygoalof theCSMC

is to prepare students to become the nextgenerationof greenchemists.Byoffering collaborative mentorships, the program aims to broaden graduate student perspectives and opportunities and shorten the time to degree. Students begin their careers by taking a series of summer immersion courses insemiconductorprocessing.CSMCprograms have placed graduate students in high schools to inspire more Oregon students to go to college, and graduate students have participated in industrial, teaching, or national lab internships to helpdefinetheircareerpaths,expandresearch opportunities, and inspire a love of teaching.

Chemistry professor Jim Hutchison holds the Lokey-Harrington Chair in Chemistry. A key player in the UO’s nation-leading green chemistry effort, he conducts research in materials chemistry and nanoscience. Hutchison heads a research team that was recently awarded a $500,000 Partnership for Innovation grant from the National Science Foundation to accelerate the commercialization of inorganic, green nanoparticle technologies.

Chemistry professor Dave Johnson is the Rosaria P. Haugland Foundation Chair in Pure and Applied Chemistry and the director of the Center for Advanced Materials Characterization in Oregon (CAMCOR), the UO’s high-tech extension service. His research interest is at the intersection of chemistry and physics—at the forefront of materials research. His groundbreaking, nontraditional approach to chemical synthesis has led to many new materials that have immediate practical applications. An entrepreneur and an educator, Johnson has helped create research and educational programs with Oregon industries and frequently interacts with high school students and public audiences across the state.

BY THE NUMBERS

A ll told, UO research contributed millions of

dollars to the Oregon economy in 2012. Sponsored expenditures in fiscal year 2012 totaled $121.7 million. Research creates jobs for the people who live in our communities, pay state taxes, and send their children to our schools.

FEDERAL $96,985,189

INDUSTRY $4,025,266

FOUNDATIONS AND ASSOCIATIONS $5,030,442

OTHER $2,674,195

STATES $775,770

*Includes all external awards for research, instructional, and outreach activities

BREAKOUT OF TOTAL FUNDS AWARDED TO UO IN FISCAL YEAR 2012*

SOURCES OF FEDERAL FUNDING BY AGENCY IN FISCAL YEAR 2012

Research, Innovation, and Graduate Education

GRADUATE ENROLLMENT, FALL 2012

MASTER’S DEGREE PROGRAMS 1,678

DOCTORAL PROGRAMS 1,244

DEGREES AWARDED ACADEMIC YEAR 2011–12

MASTER’S DEGREES 987

DOCTORAL DEGREES 173

DEPT. OF EDUCATION $31,843,615

DEPT. OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES $25,357,576

NATL. SCIENCE FOUNDATION $18,679,956

DEPT. OF DEFENSE $6,498,759

DEPT. OF ENERGY $5,757,363

OTHER FEDERAL AGENCIES $4,070,514

DEPT. OF STATE $2,723,221

DEPT. OF TRANSPORTATION $913,672

DEPT. OF THE INTERIOR $590,191

NATL. ENDOWMENT FOR THE HUMANITIES $550,323

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BRINGING IT TOGETHER

There are numerous reasons to celebrate research over the past year at the University of Oregon—andgoodcausetolookforwardto2013.Afewof thedevelopmentson the horizon include:

• Theopeningof thenewMicrobial Ecology and Theory of Animals Center for Systems Biology(METACSB),asystemsbiologyresearchandeducationcenterdevotedtothestudyof animal-associatedmicrobialcommunitiesfundedbya$10.3milliongrantfromtheNationalInstitutesof Health.ThecenterwillincludetwelveUOresearchersfromfourinstitutesandfivedepartments.

• South Willamette Valley Technology Business Accelerator, a proposed community partnership centered on UO and Oregon State University research, designed to fosterjobcreationbyadvancingtheinitiation,support,growth,andretentionof technology-basedstartupsinourregion.

• Bridging Open Networks for Scientific Applications and Innovation(BONSAI),aNationalScienceFoundation–fundedprogramtobuildahigh-speeddatanetworkto connect researchers in biology, chemistry, computer science, neuroscience, and physics.

• AproposedOregon University Research Information “Collaboratory” program with PortlandStateUniversity,OregonHealth&ScienceUniversity,andOregonStateUniversity,whichcallsfora$17millioninvestmentinhighereducationinformationtechnology infrastructure.

• Newresearchcollaborationscomingoutof theRobert and Beverly Lewis Integrative Science Building.Newconnectionsarealreadybeingmadebetweenresearchersfromdifferent departments and the seeds are being sown for some great discoveries.

ResearchexcellenceaboundsattheUniversityof Oregon.Facultymembersaretrainingtheresearchersof tomorrowusingtoolsandtechnologiesthatdidn’texistjustafewyears ago, and researchers are working collaboratively to develop solutions to society’s grand challenges today. The year ahead will bring untold research breakthroughs, awards, achievements, grants, donations, and other research successes.

Researchenergizesourstate’seconomic,cultural,andpoliticalstructure,andfurtherstheUO’s mission of creating and transferring knowledge to the state, the nation, and the world.

Looking Forward to 2013

Kimberly Andrews EspyVice president for research and innovation, dean of the graduate school

Patrick PhillipsProfessor of biology, associate vice president for research

Beth StormshakProfessor of counseling psychology, associate vice president for research

Pat JonesAssociate vice president for research finance and business administration

Sandra MorgenProfessor of anthropology, vice provost for graduate studies and associate dean

Mia TuanProfessor of education studies, associate dean of the graduate school

OREGON RESEARCH ANNUAL REPORTPublished January 2013 by the Office of the Vice President for Research, Innovation, and Graduate Studies, 1266 University of Oregon, Eugene OR 97403-1266, phone 541-346-2090, fax 541-346-2023.

For information or to leave feedback, visit research.uoregon.edu/content/we-want-hear-you.

Writerandeditor:LewisTaylorContributing writer: Jim BarlowPublicationcoordinator:MoiraKiltiePhotographers:JackLiu,MichaelMcDermottCopyeditor: John R. CrosiarDesignandEditingServices

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Research and Graduate Education Leadership Team

External HonorsFollowing is a sampling of external honors

bestowed on UO faculty members in fiscal year 2012.

Academia Europaea MemberAlexanderB.Murphy,geographyAmerican Academy of Arts and SciencesKatharineV.Cashman,geologicalsciencesAmerican Association for the Advancement of Science FellowsMichaelHaley,chemistryCraig Young, marine biologyAmerican Chemical Society FellowGeri Richmond, chemistryAmerican Council of Learned Societies 2012 Digital Innovation FellowshipsMassimoLollino,RomancelanguagesJamesTice,architectureAmerican Council of Learned Societies FellowshipMichelleMcKinley,lawEllen Herman, historyMassimoLollino,RomancelanguagesAmerican Educational Research Association SER-SIG Distinguished Researcher AwardGeraldTindal,educationAmerican Physical Society FellowMarinaGuenza,chemistryAmerican Planning Association Outstanding Federal Planning ProjectMarkGillem,architectureAmerican Psychological Association, Margaret Gorman Early Career AwardAzim Shariff, psychologyAssociation for Psychological Science FellowEd Awh, psychologyThe Best American Short Stories 2011, “Gurov in Manhattan”Ehud Havazelet, creative writing2012 Thomas F. Blackwell Memorial AwardSuzanne Rowe, law

2011 Broadcast Education Association (BEA) Best Documentary AwardDanielMiller,journalismandcommunicationCamille and Henry Dreyfus Foundation, Camille Dreyfus Teacher Scholar AwardShih-Yuan Liu, chemistryDesignIntelligence 2012 Most Admired EducatorsDavidHulse,landscapearchitectureDuPont Young ProfessorsShannon Boettcher, chemistryEsri Best Mobile GIS App AwardKenKato,InfoGraphicsLabEuropean Institutes for Advanced Study Fellowship Programme, EURIAS Senior ScholarEric Pederson, linguisticsFondation Ipsen Neuronal Plasticity Prize (France)Helen Neville, psychologyFulbright Scholar ProgramLisa Gilman, EnglishJames Goes, businessNicolas Larco, architectureDavidLi,EnglishStephanie Wood, UO LibrariesHarvard University Center on the Developing Child Senior FellowPhil Fisher, psychologyIndustrial Designers Society of America (IDSA) Young Educator of the YearKierstenMuenchinger,productdesignInstitute for Advanced Study (Princeton) MembershipBryna Goodman, historyNate Andrade, historyInstitute of Ismaili Studies Zahid Ali Award (United Kingdom)Sean Anthony, historyInternational Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Academy of Environmental Law Senior PrizeSvitlanaKravchenko,lawJournal of Physical Organic Chemistry Award for Early ExcellenceShih-Yuan Liu, chemistry

Lambda Literary Award, Best LGBT AnthologyMichaelHames-García,ethnicstudiesErnestoMartínez,ethnicstudiesMarch of Dimes Foundation, Basil O’Connor Starter Scholar Research AwardKrynStankunas,biologyElinor Melville Prize for Latin American Environmental HistoryMarkCarey,historyNational Academy of Sciences memberEric U. Selker, biologyNational Endowment for the Humanities Research Fellowship for University TeachingSean Anthony, historyGerald Berk, political scienceNational Endowment for the Humanities Summer Research FellowshipJeff Ostler, historyMaryWood,EnglishOHSU Medical Research Foundation of Oregon Discovery AwardChrisDoe,biologyOHSU Medical Research Foundation of Oregon Richard T. Jones New Investigator AwardHui Zong, biologyOregon Arts Commission Individual Artist FellowshipsMikeBray,artBrian Gillis, artDonaldMorgan,artJack Ryan, artPew Charitable Trusts, Pew ScholarBrad J. Nolen, chemistrySimons Foundation FellowJohnToner,physicsWenner-Gren Foundation Research AwardPhilip Scher, anthropologyWestern History Association’s Hal K. Rothman AwardMarshaWeisiger,historyWissenschaftskolleg zu Berlin Europe in the Middle East FellowshipMichaelAllan,comparativeliterature

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An equal-opportunity, affirmative-action institution committed to cultural diversity and compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act. This publication will be provided in accessible formats upon request. ©2013 University of Oregon. DES0113-206b-C18323.